Seven sites in race to become region’s first Enterprise Zone

Robin Hood Airport Business Park and the Dearne Valley corridor are among the possible sites identified by local authorities in the Sheffield City Region as suitable for the status, in which companies will be encouraged to set up with business rate discounts, tax relief, superfast broadband and fast-track planning rules.

The shortlist was revealed yesterday, and business and council leaders on the Local Enterprise Partnership’s (LEP) Board will now discuss which site to recommend to the Government as the best option.

Chancellor George Osborne promised an Enterprise Zone in both Sheffield and Leeds City regions in his March Budget when he announced there would be 21 around the country as part of the Government’s push to revive the economy.

Today the board of Leeds City Region’s LEP will meet to discuss its possible sites, although it has not published a shortlist. Several sites are under consideration and it is thought the zone could be focused on low carbon industry.

In Sheffield City Region, possible sites range in size from four hectares (9.8 acres) to 110 (272 acres). The Government wants zones to be between 50 (123.5 acres) and 150 hectares (370 acres), but Ministers are willing to consider spreading the benefits over several smaller sites.

On the shortlist are the 91-hectare (225-acre) Robin Hood Airport Business Park, near Doncaster, which is already due to benefit from improved transport links to the nearby town thanks to funding from the Regional Growth Fund for a new link road.

A 110 hectare (272-acre) site next to the A1M – south of Harworth at Junction 34 – just 9km (5.6 miles) away from the airport is also on the list, as is an 80-hectare (197-acre) site next to junction 29A of the M1 at Markham Vale.

Another contender is dubbed the Modern Manufacturing Priority Area, a series of sites in the Lower Don Valley between Sheffield and Rotherham, which would capitalise on the success of the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Waverley and create one of the largest concentrations of hi-tech manufacturing in the UK. Officials believe it could create 17,000 jobs.

The Dearne Valley has also been seen as a strong option, with a series of sites totalling more than 100 hectares (247 acres) earmarked for becoming a centre of green industry. The area was given a fresh lease of life as an Enterprise Zone in the 1990s after the devastation of pit closures.

The smallest site is the Courthouse Campus in Barnsley town centre, which is just over four hectares (9.8 acres) and is set to be developed with offices aimed at creative and digital industries, while the 25-hectare (62-acre) brownfield Chesterfield Waterside site running along the A61 and River Rother is also under consideration.

The chairman of the Sheffield City Region LEP, James Newman, said: “We invited submissions from across the Sheffield City Region, and the LEP Board will how consider those received with a view to making a final decision by the end of the month.

“This is a huge opportunity for the Sheffield City Region to maximise the economic growth that an Enterprise Zone will stimulate and in considering proposals the LEP Board will ensure it is focused on Zones that will bring the most benefit to the Sheffield City Region as a whole, as well as meeting the Government’s requirements.”

Ministers are banking on the zones creating hundreds of jobs and kickstarting the private sector as public sector cuts start to bite, and both areas are keen to start enjoying the benefits as soon as possible. Councils will keep any business rates paid by companies setting up in the zones, giving them an extra incentive to make them a success.

Among the sites likely to be discussed by Leeds City Region today is the Aire Valley for which hundreds of homes and businesses are planned. Sites in Bradford are also set to be considered with key city regeneration projects having stalled.